Courage to rest drives Ohtani’s performance

Perhaps it is human nature to be lazy. I have always wondered about baseball players. When a batter is already out, why sprint so hard to first base? There are limits to physical endurance, yet players often run full speed. Would it not be better to conserve energy for the next at-bat and swing harder?

Shohei Ohtani, 32, of the Los Angeles Dodgers, appears to think similarly. In two practice games in Osaka ahead of the 2026 World Baseball Classic, Ohtani went hitless in five at-bats. On March 4, at a press conference in Tokyo, he was asked about actions he consciously avoids to manage his condition. He said:

“A player is fundamentally someone who wants to practice. So when you can, it is fine to do so. Right now, it is early in the season, and players cannot quickly raise their condition to 100 percent. In that context, resting is also a form of courage, and choosing not to practice can be part of a training strategy. How far to go and where to stop is ultimately up to each individual player.”

Once the tournament began, Ohtani’s performance changed dramatically. In Japan’s first group-stage game against Taiwan, he hit a double in his first at-bat and followed with a grand slam in his next. By March 9, he had a .556 batting average with five hits in nine at-bats, two home runs, and six RBIs, helping Japan remain undefeated. Given these results, his hitless practice games could reasonably be interpreted as a deliberate choice.

American author Jenny Odell, 40, takes the idea further. In her 2019 book "How to Do Nothing," she wrote that time spent doing nothing is necessary for maintenance, recovery, and care. Rest is not just a prerequisite for improved performance. It is inherently essential to human well-being. Odell describes doing nothing as “ironically, a kind of action plan.”

Rest therefore requires courage. Everyone knows it is important, yet deciding to actually take a break is not easy. Many people do not even know how to rest well. It seems only those like Ohtani, who have earned the right to pause, can truly do so. For those who cannot demonstrate their achievements, anxiety often accompanies even moments of rest.

Sports journalists, often considered to have cushy jobs, are not immune to this paradox. Reporting on Ohtani’s success after his rest requires opening a laptop far from family, sacrificing weekends. Many journalists miss children’s birthdays, and some report that their kids grow distant from sports over time.

After finishing this piece at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport, I will board a flight to Miami, where South Korea will play its second-round WBC game. More than 15 hours in economy class await, a forced rest. Even so, it allows me to practice Odell’s philosophy of doing nothing, so perhaps this is just the indulgent grievance of a well-off sports reporter.